Proposed Wage Revision Attacked

Northern Advocate, 10 May 1940, Page 3

Proposed Wage Revision Attacked

[Per Press Association Copyright] DUNEDIN. This Day.

Further reference was made yesterday. by Mr James Begg to the agreement between the Federation of Labour, Employers’ Federation and the Manufacturers’ Federation in asking the Government to introduce legislation empowering the Arbitration Court to revise wages. Mr Begg had previously spoken on the subject at a meeting of the Otago Provincial Council of the Farmers’ Union. “The Federation of Labour approached the Arbitration Court with a view to getting a general order for an increase in wages to compensate ■for the increased cost of living,” said Mr Begg yesterday. “Whatever may be said to the contrary, the Manufacturers’ Association and the Employers’ Federation have by their recommendation, facilitated this being done. Government Assisted. “If the recommendation is adopted, the Government will be relieved of a good deal of responsibility, and the onus of deciding whether there is to be a general rise in wages will be left to the Arbitration Court. “As our war effort is largely bound up with a question of wages and costs, the Government should assume the full responsibility in these matters. “The gross injustice of raising wages to compensate for the increased cost of living, .while leaving many thousands of the poorer sections of the people who live on small private incomes, people on superannuation, pensioners, sustenance men and others, not only without any increase in their incomes to meet increased costs, but also with an additional burden in providing their share of increased wages, needs no elaboration.”